The Justice in Secrets
by EevyLynn
Summary: Superman has always been able to thwart Lex Luthors plans with basically no help, but what happens when he gets in over his head in more ways than one. Smallville's JLA included. Clois. Edited grammar mistakes.


**A/N: With Smallville over, I might continue this. I'm still in the planning process. As the show went on, ideas I had for the story have changed, so we'll see where it goes from here.**

**I do not own anything you recognize. I do own the plot, Hazel, and Hanna.**

**I'd also like to note that while this is posted under Superman, this is heavily influenced by Smallville. If you don't like this, tell me nicely. **

* * *

The rain seemed to come out of nowhere. It had been bright and sunny with only a couple of clouds in the sky the whole way here, and yet as soon as she stepped out of the taxi, it just started pouring. She ran up the steps holding her purse over her head, dragging the rest of her luggage behind her, and rang the doorbell.

"Come in!" said voice from inside.

She quickly opened the door and stepped inside. She put her luggage beside the door, and as she closed it she saw that just as quickly as the rain had started, it had stopped.

"Well, that's just my luck!" she muttered.

"What's just your luck?" a bubbly voice said right behind her, startling her so much that she fell back and tripped over one of her bags sitting right behind her.

"Lois! I'm so sorry! Did I scare you—of course I scared you—that was a stupid question! Here let me help you up," the second woman said all this really fast as she helped Lois get up. "Are you okay?" From the tone of her voice and the way her eyes were looking Lois over, from the bags under her eyes to the paleness of her skin to the fact that she just looked so sickly, Lois knew that her little cousin wasn't talking about her just falling.

"Yeah, I'm fine, Chloe," Lois muttered distractedly. "Look, can you just show me where I can put my bags?"

"Sure," Chloe said, still eyeing Lois, "just follow me up here."

Chloe then grabbed a couple of the smaller of Lois's bags as Lois grabbed her purse and her biggest bag, and they went up the stairs. Lois followed Chloe into the guest room on the left side of the hall.

The guest room was like most guest rooms. It had a full size bed with a floral bedspread, a nightstand, a dresser, a closet, and a couple of storage bins in the corner. All in all, it wasn't anything special, but for Lois, who had just had an exhausting week, it could have been a palate on the floor and she wouldn't care.

"I'll be downstairs," Chloe said, setting the bags she was holding on the bed. "Just make yourself at home and come down whenever you feel like it." With this she walked out and closed the door.

Lois heard her walking down the stairs as she started unpacking her clothes. She released a sigh as she remembered the events of the past couple of weeks that caused her to just pack her bags and fly out from Metropolis to Star City. She finished putting her clothes away and just lied on the bed watching the shadows of the tree outside her window played across the ceiling. Within minutes, she fell asleep.

* * *

Chloe was just turning the coffeepot off as she heard footsteps coming down the stairs. She grabbed two mugs from the cabinet behind her and fixed both coffees. Then she carried the mugs to the breakfast table by the windows, and sat down as she watched her three year old daughter playing outside with her husband. She smiled contentedly as she looked down at her very pregnant belly.

"How much longer?" Lois asked as she walked into the room.

"Only five weeks left. Though I can't wait until she is finally out, let me tell you," Chloe replied.

"I bet. Have you thought of any names yet?" Lois said.

"We settled on Hanna Grace Allen."

"Oh, that's pretty! Has Bart complained yet on it being another girl?"

"No, amazingly, you'd think that he would, but he loves the idea of having another daddy's little girl. Hazel is his world," Chloe said smiling slightly.

For a while they both just sat silently watching through the window as Hazel ran around the yard with Bart chasing her. They started laughing as they saw Hazel run, trip, and fall over Woof, their Australian shepherd who was innocently sleeping seconds before. Chloe noticed that Lois's laugh sounded slightly forced.

Chloe sighed and said, "Lois, look, if you don't want to tell me what's wrong, so be it, but just realize that I know there is something bothering you. Why else would I get a phone call in the middle of the night saying that you were about to get on a plane to come over for a while."

Lois looked down nervously and said, "I don't know how to say this."

Chloe nodded and said, "Just say the first thing that comes to mind when you think of whatever it is you wish to tell me."

Lois continued to avoid contact as she mumbled really fast, "Ithinkimightbepregnant."

Chloe froze wondering if she really heard what she thought she heard, "Wait, what?"

Lois took a deep breath as she forced herself to say louder and clearer, "I…um…I think I might be…pregnant."

"Pregnant?" Chloe slowly repeated, "How?" Then her eyes started to widen as she remembered what Clark had told her before he left, everything from Niagara falls to that fateful kiss.

"I don't know. I'm not sure." Lois said, just as slowly, not noticing the dawning comprehension on Chloe's face.

Chloe pulled herself together, reminding herself that she wasn't supposed to tell Lois. She figured her best bet would be to just play dumb. No matter how much she disapproved of what Clark did, it was a done deal, and it wasn't her place to share.

So she said, "How can you possibly not be sure, Lois? I don't exactly think this could possibly be the Immaculate Conception. That was already taken."

"I know that, Chloe. It's just that," Lois lowered her voice, looking out the window to make sure the other residents were still well out of earshot, "I don't remember having sex at all in a little over a year."

A skeptical look came over Chloe's face as she said, "Are you sure? Because, I mean, how else could this happen?"

Lois looked even more nervous as she said, "Okay,but you have to swear not to tell anyone what I'm about to tell you!"

The skeptical look slowly took on a slightly anxious form as she said, "Okay, I swear."

"Really?"

"Yes, Lois, I swear."

"Are you sure?"

"Lois!"

"Okay, okay, fine. I get it...you swore," Lois still looked a little unsure. She took a deep breath and plowed on, "Okay, warning, this is going to sound a little crazy. Well, this is actually going to sound really crazy. In fact you are probably going to wonder if I want to star in an article at _The __Inquisitor_, because it sounds so utterly and completely ins—."

"Lois!" Chloe said suddenly and Lois went quiet, "You're rambling."

"Sorry, it's just that you'll think I'm insane and I swear I'm not-."

"Just spit it out, Lois!" Chloe nearly yelled, the hormonal pregnant woman was really getting tired of Lois going around in circles.

"I think the father is Superman," Lois blurted out before she had a chance to think much more about it.

Chloe froze. Then she quietly asked, "Why do you think that?"

Lois hesitated slightly before she said, "I've been having this dream for several weeks now. I'm in what looks like a ice palace, on a round, silver bed completely…well…naked. Superman is also in the dream, and…we…well…we…"

"Have sex." Chloe finished for her.

"Yeah, and it was the most amazing I've ever had. Better than with Ollie, and that's saying something," Lois said. "Look, I told you this sounds insane, but that's the only reasonable explanation."

"Yes, Lois. Having sex with someone in a dream certainly explains you getting pregnant."

"Chloe, I'm serious. How else can you explain it? Maybe I was drunk or something and I don't remember, and my subconscious is trying to tell me who it was."

"Well, I guess that would explain it," Chloe said. As she opened her mouth to say more on the subject, Bart and Hazel, both came in laughing and out of breath.

"Aunt Lo!" Hazel yelled as she caught sight of Lois. She scrambled to climb out of her fathers arms and ran over to give Lois a hug.

"Hey, big girl! Wow you must have grown a foot since I last saw you! I should put a weight on top of your head to shrink you!" Lois said smiling as she looked the little girl over. Hazel looked exactly like Chloe did at that age, the only difference being that she had Bart's curly, caramel colored hair that came down to the center of her back.

"No, you shouldn't! That's not nice! It would hurt!" Hazel giggled as she climbed onto Lois's lap.

"Relax, she wouldn't do such a thing," Bart said as he walked over to the refrigerator to grab a drink. "Daddy'll go Kung Fu on her is she tried."

"Kung Fu?" Lois asked amused.

"She's three what else do you want me to say?" Bart said as he sat down in the seat on the other side of Chloe.

"Three 'n a half!" Hazel reminded him indignantly.

"What's so funny?" she asked as this started a round of snickering amongst the grown-ups.

* * *

That night, just as Lois was about to go to bed, Chloe came in.

"Hey, I came in to wish you good night," she said as she sat on the edge of the bed.

"Oh, good night," Lois said in return; however, Chloe didn't get up yet.

"Lois I was meaning to ask you earlier, but I didn't want to talk in front of Bart and Hazel."

"Okay, spill then."

Chloe looked down as she asked, "Just out of curiosity, how long do you plan on staying here?"

Lois suddenly became nervous. Chloe noticed.

"Lois?" Chloe prompted.

"Okay, I talked to Perry about me working at the _The Planet_'s Star City branch for a little while."

"And how long is a little while?

"I was kind of hoping until after the baby is born," she mumbled.

"Oh. If you don't mind me asking, why?"

"Well, for one, I don't really have anyone in Metropolis to help me. Lucy lives over in Gotham, dad is God know where, and I really don't feel comfortable about running to Mrs. K in Smallville about this especially since she did so much for me. I'd feel bad dropping this on her. I need you, Chlo," she finished quietly.

Chloe sat there for a little while thinking. She knew that if Martha knew what the circumstances were, she'd have no objections. However, she also knew that Lois was too good of a reporter to waste her time at _The Smallville Ledger_ because she needed help with a young child. There was only one real choice to be made here.

"Lois, you know that we would love nothing more than for you to stay here with us. You can stay as long as you need to. Just remember, within the next month, we'll be gaining another tenant here," Chloe said as she patted her huge stomach. With this, she stood up and waddled out the room.

Lois sat there quietly for a couple minutes, and then she turned off the side table lamp, curled up, and went to sleep.

* * *

The next several months went by quickly for the residents of the Allen house. Chloe had a healthy baby girl three weeks after Lois moved in. Hazel was ecstatic about her new baby sister, even though she was disappointed when she figured out that it would be a while until Hanna would be able to play with big girl toys.

Lois did well at her job at Star City's Branch, naturally. When she was two months along, she met Richard White.

He was the star reporter in the international department there and took an interest in her fiery spirit and dominating personality. The fact that she was pregnant didn't deter him from pursuing her. Actually, the fact that she was bent on being able to independently raise her child if she had to, even though most women would have probably given up, caused him to be even more intrigued with her.

It took a little bit of convincing for her to actually go out with him, but Richard was persistent. After about a month, Lois finally gave in. She actually found that he helped her get out of the rut her life seemed to constantly stay in ever since _he_ left.

Richard never asked about the father because got the impression she never wanted to talk about it. He was very supportive of her throughout her pregnancy and insisted on being with her for the delivery. They agreed to give her son the last name White instead of Lane after they agreed to put his name as the father on the birth certificate.

Lois was going on nine and half months whenever her doctor decided it would probably be best to induce because it didn't seem as if the baby was going to be coming out on its own anytime soon. She consented and on March 21, 2002, Jason Samuel White was born.

* * *

The car was silent as the Allens drove home from the hospital. Hazel and Hanna were in their respective car seats sleeping, and Bart's eyes were firmly placed on the road. The tension in the air was thick, yet Chloe was completely clueless as to why.

The whole family was at the hospital: General Sam, Lucy, Ron, their kids, Chloe, Bart, Hazel, and Hanna. Richard was in the room with Lois during the birth. When everyone got to go into the room, everyone started the usual game of pass the baby. After Chloe finished holding little Jason, she passed him on to Bart, who, after one look at the boy, turned sullen. He tried passing the baby back to Lois saying that they needed to head home. Hazel, who hadn't had a chance to hold Jason yet stubbornly refused to go until she had a turn. Bart hurriedly let her hold Jason then handed him to Richard while telling Lois congrats and rushed the family to the car.

Ever since then, Bart's jaw was set and refused to even look at Chloe, and she was starting to get frustrated.

"That's it!" she burst, "Are you going to tell me why you've suddenly gone huffy because what you did back there was just rude?"

Bart raised an eyebrow at this, "Huffy?"

"Bart!"

Bart sighed as he looked at the road and went silent once more.

Chloe gave him a look of amazement, "Are you ignoring me?"

"If I was ignoring you I wouldn't be responding."

"But you didn't respond! You just questioned my choice of wording," she returned, glaring.

"Well, I mean really, who uses the word 'huffy' nowadays?" he responds, a small smirk forming on his face.

"I do, and you're avoiding the question."

Once again he went silent. Chloe rolled her eyes and turned to glare out the passenger window, shaking her head.

"When were you planning on telling me?" Bart said softly.

Chloe's glare became a questioning glance as she turned to him, "What?"

"When were you planning on telling me?" he repeated, his tone harder than before.

"Telling you what?" she said, confused.

"About Jason's father."

Chloe quickly schooled her shock to a more neutral look, "What are you talking about? I don't—"

"Don't lie to me Chloe," Bart interrupted, glaring at her. "I know who it is. I mean, it's not as if that baby looks exactly like him."

Chloe was silent for a while, just looking out into the darkness as they drove out of city limits.

Looking down at her hands, she sighed, "I promised her I wouldn't tell anybody."

"Not even me?"

Chloe just nodded. Bart grimaced as he just got even more annoyed.

"You do realize that I'll need to tell the guys?"

Chloe turned to him, eyes widening imploringly, shaking her head back and forth.

"Bart, you can't! I swore to Lois that I wouldn't—"

"But you won't," he interrupted firmly as he turned into their driveway. He then lowered his voice, "I will. Clark made us swear that we would protect Lois while he was gone. Jason is a part of her, and even more vulnerable. You do realize that if anyone who wished to hurt Clark found out about Jason, he would be in great danger?"

"Yes," Chloe said softly, "that's why you can't tell them. If there are more people that know, there is greater risk for Jason."

"But how will we be able to protect him, if I'm the only one that knows about him."

"I know, but—" she started.

"Chloe, I'm telling the guys, whether you like it or not. We made a promise to Clark," Bart said firmly, voice showing no room for arguments.

* * *

**A/N2: Don't forget to review. :)**


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